Help to prepare for 15 y/o Sulcata foster/adoption

[ofafeather]

Hello,

We are new members and are about to embark on our tortoise journey by fostering/adopting a 15 y/o Sulcata. We’re told that she is about 20” and 35lbs. We don’t have any reptile experience but have extensive bird experience.

We live about 100 miles north of NYC and have plenty of outside space. We plan to build an outdoor enclosure and house for her but she will most likely need to spend winter in the house with us - certainly for now.

We have a room we can use that gets good sun and has a decent amount of floor space. We could use some helping with designing the indoor enclosure, especially since it might be temporary. Reading here, we will most likely use orchid bark as a substrate.

We’re told that she hasn’t taken to eating hay yet, but I see from reading the forum that it is not uncommon up to this age. We will probably have her around March 2 but would like to be as prepared as possible.

Any help is greatly appreciate!

Best,
Eric & Lorraine

 

[Ink]

@Tom should be able to help you out.

 

[SinLA]

Welcome to the forum! There is a LOT of bad tortoise info out there on youtube and FB and other places, this is a good place. Hopefully you have already seen this: https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/info-for-new-people-please-read-this-first.202363/#post-2036954

Letting a tortoise wander around a house is not great. Lots of people do it, especially those on instagram, but its neither safe nor healthy for the tortoise. It may be you need to until you can get a heated outdoor box set up for him (directions in the link above).

Thank you so much for rescuing one in need!

 

[ofafeather]

Welcome to the forum! There is a LOT of bad tortoise info out there on youtube and FB and other places, this is a good place. Hopefully you have already seen this: https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/info-for-new-people-please-read-this-first.202363/#post-2036954

Thanks! Yes, we did read that thread. I appreciated you listing it here. Haven’t looked much at building a heated outdoor box yet.

It may be you need to until you can get a heated outdoor box set up for him (directions in the link above).

I think we’ll need something indoors for at least a few weeks which is why we’re looking for some ideas for an indoor enclosure so she won’t be free-roaming in the house.

 

[Lyn W]

Hi and welcome
You're very wise to prepare before your tort arrives. Having everything in place is so much easier for you and the tort.
Please read the link SinLa posted above which explains a lot of the do' and don'ts and look out for the Sulcata caresheet.
Pet stores know very little about tort care and often sell unsuitable and unsafe equipment so check here before spending any of your hard earned money on expensive lamps etc which may not be safe - other members can save you a lot of money and hassle and make sure your tort has everything he needs for a safe and happy life.
Tom has a great design for a heated night box but that will probably also need to be in a heated shed/room for NY winters so great that you have a spare room for him. My leopard is a lot smaller than your sully will be, but he has an adapted room which he lives in all year around because even our UK summers can be too cold and wet. He has free access to the garden in the warmer months.
Good luck with setting up and with your new arrival! Ask as many questions as you like there's always someone to help.

 

[SinLA]

Can you share pictures of the tortoise (or do you not have yet? Anything the group may have shared with you?). At that size, you probably need a bedroom dedicated to him, as well as a space heater for that room.

I'm not a Sulcata person, so hopefully @Tom @Yvonne G and others can better assist you from here...

 

[zovick]

Hello,

We are new members and are about to embark on our tortoise journey by fostering/adopting a 15 y/o Sulcata. We’re told that she is about 20” and 35lbs. We don’t have any reptile experience but have extensive bird experience.

We live about 100 miles north of NYC and have plenty of outside space. We plan to build an outdoor enclosure and house for her but she will most likely need to spend winter in the house with us - certainly for now.

We have a room we can use that gets good sun and has a decent amount of floor space. We could use some helping with designing the indoor enclosure, especially since it might be temporary. Reading here, we will most likely use orchid bark as a substrate.

We’re told that she hasn’t taken to eating hay yet, but I see from reading the forum that it is not uncommon up to this age. We will probably have her around March 2 but would like to be as prepared as possible.

Any help is greatly appreciate!

Best,
Eric & Lorraine

Hi and welcome. I am curious as to where you are located (town). I owned rental property in Amenia, Copake, Millerton, and Pine Plains, NY. I lived in Sharon, CT for 30 years and kept many tortoises the entire time.

I had 4 adult sulcatas and kept them in my heated basement in large pens for 7 years. Ultimately, though, their care and the high expense of feeding them through the winter became very burdensome, and I ended up sending them to the San Antonio Zoo on breeding loan where they prospered and produced many babies in the 1980's and beyond.

If I think of any idea which may help you, I'll post them later as I have to go to an appointment right now.

 

[ofafeather]

Can you share pictures of the tortoise (or do you not have yet? Anything the group may have shared with you?).

Unfortunately no pictures yet. We believe she is about 15 y/o and has been living with someone that does rescues of various critters for the past 10 years. The information we currently have is second hand from a friend that does rescue and rehab work and has been helping her find a home.

 

[ofafeather]

Hi and welcome. I am curious as to where you are located (town). I owned rental property in Amenia, Copake, Millerton, and Pine Plains, NY. I lived in Sharon, CT for 30 years and kept many tortoises the entire time.

Thanks! Wow, we’re in Ancram on the Millerton border. Small world!

 

[ofafeather]

My leopard is a lot smaller than your sully will be, but he has an adapted room

What kind of adaptations have you made for your leopard’s room?

 

[SinLA]

Unfortunately no pictures yet. We believe she is about 15 y/o and has been living with someone that does rescues of various critters for the past 10 years. The information we currently have is second hand from a friend that does rescue and rehab work and has been helping her find a home.

OK, as a rescuer myself I can tell you that can be good, or very very bad. No way of knowing. I see rescues that do great jobs with dogs and cats, and then completely bung it up when it comes to reptiles or other exotic animals. Fingers crossed for you!

 

[ofafeather]

OK, as a rescuer myself I can tell you that can be good, or very very bad. No way of knowing. I see rescues that do great jobs with dogs and cats, and then completely bung it up when it comes to reptiles or other exotic animals. Fingers crossed for you!

Yeah, we’ve seen the same story with birds. Fingers crossed!

 

[SinLA]

Yeah, we’ve seen the same story with birds. Fingers crossed!

I bet! I see bird rescue online and I'm like NOPE NOPE NOPE. I think bird rescue and reptile rescue are probably on par for how awful it is. While dog/cat rescue has its horror stories, the "average" person knows basics on how to care for one. Not so with birds and reptiles... I had parakeets growing up, i feel badly for them in hindsight 8-(

 

[Lyn W]

What kind of adaptations have you made for your leopard’s room?

I have rubber matting down which not only protects the floor but makes it easier on his legs. Depending on your flooring you may want to put some waterproof membrane and tarp down under that as well. He has a heated, insulted dog kennel as his hide which has been great for saving on the bills - before I bought that I used to have my heating on 24/7/365 just to heat the room to make sure his ambient temps were warm enough. I have his basking bulb and his uvb tube hanging in there. There is quite a lot of light in the room but uvb doesn't travel through glass which is why he has the uvb tube.
I'll see if I can find any photos.

 

[Len B]

Hello,

We are new members and are about to embark on our tortoise journey by fostering/adopting a 15 y/o Sulcata. We’re told that she is about 20” and 35lbs. We don’t have any reptile experience but have extensive bird experience.

We live about 100 miles north of NYC and have plenty of outside space. We plan to build an outdoor enclosure and house for her but she will most likely need to spend winter in the house with us - certainly for now.

We have a room we can use that gets good sun and has a decent amount of floor space. We could use some helping with designing the indoor enclosure, especially since it might be temporary. Reading here, we will most likely use orchid bark as a substrate.

We’re told that she hasn’t taken to eating hay yet, but I see from reading the forum that it is not uncommon up to this age. We will probably have her around March 2 but would like to be as prepared as possible.

Any help is greatly appreciate!

Best,
Eric & Lorraine

For now I would protect the floor and the walls. Not sure how big the room is but I would consider using a rubber type of peel and stick flooring for wet rooms that looks like wood and has a texture to lessen slipping while walking. I used this type of flooring in one of my sulcatas houses that I built back in 2008 and it has held up great. On the walls 12 inches of plywood along the walls is probably enough but the corners should be higher because if she is going to climb it will most likely be done in a corner.

 

[Len B]

The flooring I'm talking about does not adhere to whatever floor is below it. so can be removed easily if wanted. Each peace is glued to each other.

 

[NorCal tortoise guy]

For now I would protect the floor and the walls. Not sure how big the room is but I would consider using a rubber type of peel and stick flooring for wet rooms that looks like wood and has a texture to lessen slipping while walking. I used this type of flooring in one of my sulcatas houses that I built back in 2008 and it has held up great. On the walls 12 inches of plywood along the walls is probably enough but the corners should be higher because if she is going to climb it will most likely be done in a corner.

I would recommend 18 inches up the wall with plywood.

 

[Len B]

I would recommend 18 inches up the wall with plywood.

Yes 18 inches could be better, but most sulcatas will just walk and rub against the wall or fence or what barrier is used for the perimeter but not try to climb to get to out until it reaches a corner. That's why I said that corner protector should be higher.

 

[ofafeather]

Thank you for all of the suggestions. Please, keep them coming! So you think a 4’ x 8’ enclosure would work for indoor space?

 

[SinLA]

Thank you for all of the suggestions. Please, keep them coming! So you think a 4’ x 8’ enclosure would work for indoor space?

that’s the recommended size for a 5-8” Russian, much much too small for a Sulcata…